Device for on-line control of output power of vacuum-UV laser

ABSTRACT

A beam delivery system for a laser emitting at a relevant wavelength of less than 200 nm is provided. The system includes a sealed enclosure connected to the laser and surrounding the path of the beam as it exits the laser resonator. The enclosure extends between the laser output coupler and a photodetector sensitive at the wavelength of the relevant laser emission. The interior of the enclosure, and thus the beam path between the output coupler and the detector, is substantially free of species that strongly photoabsorb radiation at the relevant laser emission wavelength. A beam splitting element diverts at least a portion of the beam for measurement by the detector. The beam splitting element preferably includes a beam splitting mirror, holographic beam sampler or diffraction grating. In addition, optics are preferably provided for filtering a visible portion of the diverted beam, so that substantially only a VUV portion of the diverted beam is received at the detector. The filtering optics preferably include a diffraction grating, holographic beam sampler or one or more dichroic mirrors.

PRIORITY

This application is a divisional application filed under 37 C.F.R.1.53(b) which claims the benefit of priority to U.S. patent applicationSer. No. 09/598,522, filed Jun. 21, 2000, which claims the benefit ofpriority to U.S. provisional patent application Ser. No. 60/140,530,filed Jun. 23, 1999, which is hereby incorporated by reference, andwhich is also a Continuation-in-Part of U.S. patent application Ser. No.09/343,333, filed Jun. 30, 1999, now U.S. Pat. No. 6,219,368, whichclaims the benefit of priority to U.S. provisional patent applicationNo. 60/119,973, filed Feb. 12, 1999.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

1. Field of the Invention

The invention relates to on-line control of the output power of amolecular fluorine laser beam, and particularly to a technique forredirecting VUV light of the beam to a VUV detector, while filteringvisible light from the redirected beam.

2. Discussion of the Related Art

The molecular fluorine laser emitting at 157 nm has an advantageouslyshort wavelength, or high photon energy. Because of this, very smallstructures, such as sub-0.18 micron structures and even sub-0.10 micronstructures, may be formed by photolithographic exposure on semiconductorsubstrates. TFT annealing and micro-machining applications may also beperformed advantageously at this wavelength.

For the applications mentioned above, on-line monitoring and control ofthe output power of the laser may be advantageously performed such thatthe energy enclosure, of the output beam and overall performance of thelaser may be enhanced. For this purpose, an energy or power detector maybe configured to receive a split off portion of the output beam. Theinput voltage and other conditions such as the gas mixture compositionmay be actively adjusted depending on the measured pulse energy, energydose or moving average energy in order to provide high stability.

There are several factors inhibiting use of conventional light detectorsfor on-line monitoring of VUV laser output. First, laser radiation below200 nm is strongly absorbed in the atmosphere, e.g., by water vapor,oxygen, hydrocarbons, and fluorocarbons. Specifically, at 157 nm, theextinction length of a molecular fluorine laser beam is around 1 mm orless in ambient air due mostly to the presence of oxygen and water vaporin the air. Second, contaminants such as oil vapors and other organicsubstances generated, for instance, by vacuum pumps and plasticenclosures tend to form films on optical surfaces causing strongabsorption. Third, the molecular fluorine laser generates, in additionto 157 nm light, radiation in the red part of the visible spectrum,between 600 and 800 nm, due to emission by excited atomic fluorinespecies in the laser gas mixture. This red emission is sensed by mostoptical detectors whose sensitivity tends to be higher in the visiblepart of the spectrum, as compared to that in the VUV range, i.e., at 157nm.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

It is therefore an object of the invention to provide a method andapparatus for detecting output power of a molecular fluorine laser beamwithout the beam being substantially absorbed as it propagates to thedetector.

It is a further object of the invention to provide a method andapparatus for detecting the VUV output of a molecular fluorine laserwhile any accompanying visible output of the laser is substantiallysuppressed before reaching the detector.

In accord with the above objects, a beam delivery system for a laseremitting at a relevant wavelength of less than 200 nm is provided. Thesystem includes a sealed enclosure surrounding the path of the beam asit exits the laser resonator. The enclosure extends between the laseroutput coupler and a photodetector sensitive at the wavelength of therelevant laser emission. The interior of the enclosure, and thus thebeam path between the output coupler and the detector, is substantiallyfree of species that strongly photoabsorb radiation at the relevantlaser emission wavelength. A beam splitting element diverts at least aportion of the beam for measurement by the detector.

The beam splitting element preferably includes a beam splitting mirror,holographic beam sampler or diffraction grating. In addition, optics arepreferably provided for filtering a visible portion of the divertedbeam, so that substantially only a VUV portion of the diverted beam isreceived at the detector. The filtering optics preferably include adiffraction grating, holographic beam sampler or dichroic mirrors.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 schematically illustrates a molecular fluorine laser system inaccord with a preferred embodiment.

FIG. 2 schematically illustrates a beam path enclosure in accord with afirst preferred embodiment.

FIG. 3 shows plots of measured laser output power versus time for amolecular fluorine laser system including a beam path enclosure havingan evacuated interior and an enclosure purged with a steady flow ofinert gas in accord with a preferred embodiment.

FIG. 4 schematically illustrates a beam path enclosure in accord with asecond preferred embodiment.

FIG. 5 schematically illustrates a beam path enclosure in accord with athird preferred embodiment.

FIG. 6 schematically illustrates a beam path enclosure in accord with afourth preferred embodiment.

FIGS. 7a and 7 b schematically illustrate alternative beam splitterconfigurations to the first and third preferred embodiments of FIGS. 2and 5, respectively.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

The preferred embodiments described below provide means of on-linemonitoring of the output power of a vacuum UV laser, specifically amolecular fluorine laser, operating in a wavelength range below 200 nm.Preferred and alternative embodiments described below further providemeans of minimizing variations of sensitivity of VUV laser energymonitor due to absorption, as well as suppressing a visible red portionof the output. The former is generally achieved by providing a hermeticenclosure which is preferably purged with an inert gas. The latter ispreferably provided by one of three techniques including the use of adiffraction grating, a dichroic thin-film dielectric mirror arrangement,or a holographic beam sampler.

Referring to FIG. 1, a VUV laser system, preferably a molecular fluorinelaser for deep ultraviolet (DUV) or vacuum ultraviolet (VUV)lithography, is schematically shown. Alternative configurations forlaser systems for use in such other industrial applications as TFTannealing and/or micromachining, e.g., are understood by one skilled inthe art as being modified from the system shown in FIG. 1 to meet therequirements of that application. For this purpose, alternative VUVlaser system and component configurations are described at U.S. patentapplications Nos. 09/317,695, 09/317,526, 09/317,527, 09/343,333,60/122,145, 60/140,531, 60/162,735, 60/166,952, 60/171,172, 60/141,678,60/173,993, 60/166,967, 60/172,674, and 60/181,156, and U.S. patentapplication of Kleinschmidt, serial number not yet assigned, filed May18, 2000, for “Reduction of Laser Speckle in Photolithography byControlled Disruption of Spatial Coherence of Laser Beam,” and U.S. Pat.No. 6,005,880, each of which is assigned to the same assignee as thepresent application and is hereby incorporated by reference.

The system shown in FIG. 1 generally includes a laser chamber 2 having apair of main discharge electrodes 3 connected with a solid-state pulsermodule 4, and a gas handling module 6. The solid-state pulser module 4is powered by a high voltage power supply 8. The laser chamber 2 issurrounded by optics module 10 and optics module 12, forming aresonator. The optics modules 10 and 12 are controlled by an opticscontrol module 14.

A computer 16 for laser control receives various inputs and controlsvarious operating parameters of the system. A diagnostic module 18receives and measures various parameters of a split off portion of themain beam 20 via optics for deflecting a small portion of the beamtoward the module 18, such as preferably a beam splitter module 21, asshown. The beam 20 is preferably the laser output to an imaging system(not shown) and ultimately to a workpiece (also not shown). The lasercontrol computer 16 communicates through an interface 24 with astepper/scanner computer 26 and other control units 28.

The laser chamber 2 contains a laser gas mixture and includes a pair ofmain discharge electrodes and one or more preionization electrodes (notshown). Preferred main electrodes 3 are described at U.S. patentapplications Nos. 09/453,670, 60/184,705 and 60/128,227, each of whichis assigned to the same assignee as the present application and ishereby incorporated by reference. Other electrode configurations are setforth at U.S. Pat. Nos. 5,729,565 and 4,860,300, each of which isassigned to the same assignee, and alternative embodiments are set forthat U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,691,322, 5,535,233 and 5,557,629, all of which arehereby incorporated by reference. The laser chamber 2 also includes apreionization arrangement (not shown). Preferred preionization units areset forth at U.S. patent applications Nos. 60,162,845, 60/160,182,60/127,237, 09/535,276 and 09/247,887, each of which is assigned to thesame assignee as the present application, and alternative embodimentsare set forth at U.S. Pat. Nos. 5,337,330, 5,818,865 and 5,991,324, allof the above preionization units being hereby incorporated by reference.

The solid-state pulser module 14 and high voltage power supply 8 supplyelectrical energy in compressed electrical pulses to the preionizationand main electrodes within the laser chamber 2 to energize the gasmixture. The preferred pulser module and high voltage power supply aredescribed at U.S. patent applications Nos. 60/149,392, 60/198,058, and09/390,146, and U.S. patent application of Osmanow, et al., serialnumber not yet assigned, filed May 15, 2000, for “Electrical ExcitationCircuit for Pulsed Laser”, and U.S. Pat. Nos. 6,005,880 and 6,020,723,each of which is assigned to the same assignee as the presentapplication and which is hereby incorporated by reference into thepresent application. Other alternative pulser modules are described atU.S. Pat. Nos. 5,982,800, 5,982,795, 5,940,421, 5,914,974, 5,949,806,5,936,988, 6,028,872 and 5,729,562, each of which is hereby incorporatedby reference. A conventional pulser module may generate electricalpulses in excess of 3 Joules of electrical power (see the '988 patent,mentioned above).

The laser resonator which surrounds the laser chamber 2 containing thelaser gas mixture includes optics module 10 including line-narrowingoptics for a line narrowed excimer or molecular fluorine laser, whichmay be replaced by a high reflectivity mirror or the like ifline-narrowing is not desired. Exemplary line-narrowing optics of theoptics module 10 include a beam expander, an optional etalon and adiffraction grating, which produces a relatively high degree ofdispersion, for a narrow band laser such as is used with a refractive orcatadioptric optical lithography imaging system. For a semi-narrow bandlaser such as is used with an all-reflective imaging system, the gratingis replaced with a highly reflective mirror, and a lower degree ofdispersion may be produced by a dispersive prism.

The beam expander of the line-narrowing optics of the optics module 10typically includes one or more prisms. The beam expander may includeother beam expanding optics such as a lens assembly or aconverging/diverging lens pair. The grating or highly reflective mirroris preferably rotatable so that the wavelengths reflected into theacceptance angle of the resonator can be selected or tuned. The gratingis typically used, particularly in KrF and ArF lasers, both forachieving narrow bandwidths and also often for retroreflecting the beamback toward the laser tube. One or more dispersive prisms may also beused, and more than one etalon may be used.

Depending on the type and extent of line-narrowing and/or selection andtuning that is desired, and the particular laser that the line-narrowingoptics of the optics module 10 is to be installed into, there are manyalternative optical configurations that may be used. For this purpose,those shown in U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,399,540, 4,905,243, 5,226,050,5,559,816, 5,659,419, 5,663,973, 5,761,236, and 5,946,337, and U.S.patent applications Nos. 09/317,695, 09/130,277, 09/244,554, 09/317,527,09/073,070, 60/124,241, 60/140,532, 60/147,219 and 60/140,531,60/147,219, 60/170,342, 60/172,749, 60/178,620, 60/173,993, 60/166,277,60/166,967, 60/167,835, 60/170,919, 60/186,096, each of which isassigned to the same assignee as the present application, and U.S. Pat.Nos. 5,095,492, 5,684,822, 5,835,520, 5,852,627, 5,856,991, 5,898,725,5,901,163, 5,917,849, 5,970,082, 5,404,366, 4,975,919, 5,142,543,5,596,596, 5,802,094, 4,856,018, 5,970,082, 5,978,409, 5,999,318,5,150,370 and 4,829,536, are each hereby incorporated by reference intothe present application.

Optics module 12 preferably includes means for outcoupling the beam 20,such as a partially reflective resonator reflector. The beam 20 may beotherwise outcoupled such as by an intraresonator beam splitter orpartially reflecting surface of another optical element, and the opticsmodule 12 would in this case include a highly reflective mirror. Theoptics control module 14 controls the optics modules 10 and 12 such asby receiving and interpretting signals from the processor 16, andinitiating realignment or reconfiguration procedures (see the '241,'695, 277, 554, and 527 applications mentioned above).

The laser chamber 2 is sealed by windows transparent to the wavelengthsof the emitted laser radiation 14. The windows may be Brewster windowsor may be aligned at another angle to the optical path of the resonatingbeam. The beam path between the laser chamber and each of the opticsmodules 10 and 12 is sealed by enclosures 17 and 19, and the interiorsof the enclosures is substantially free of water vapor, oxygen,hydrocarbons, fluorocarbons and the like which otherwise strongly absorbVUV laser radiation.

After a portion of the output beam 20 passes the outcoupler of theoptics module 12, that output portion impinges upon beam splitter module21 which includes optics for deflecting a portion of the beam to thediagnostic module 18, or otherwise allowing a small portion of theoutcoupled beam to reach the diagnostic module 18, while a main beamportion 20 is allowed to continue as the output beam 20 of the lasersystem. Preferred optics include a beamsplitter or otherwise partiallyreflecting surface optic. The optics may also include a mirror or beamsplitter as a second reflecting optic. More than one beam splitterand/or HR mirror(s), and/or dichroic mirror(s) may be used to directportions of the beam to components of the diagnostic module 18. Aholographic beam sampler, transmission grating, partially transmissivereflection diffraction grating, grism, prism or other refractive,dispersive and/or transmissive optic or optics may also be used toseparate a small beam portion 22 from the main beam 20 for detection atthe diagnostic module 18, while allowing most of the main beam 20 toreach an application process directly or via an imaging system orotherwise. The output beam 20 may be transmitted at the beam splittermodule while a reflected beam portion 22 is directed at the diagnosticmodule 18, or the main beam 20 may be reflected, while a small portion22 is transmitted to the diagnostic module 18. The portion of theoutcoupled beam which continues past the beam splitter module 21 is theoutput beam 20 of the laser, which propagates toward an industrial orexperimental application such as an imaging system and workpiece forphotolithographic applications.

An enclosure 23 seals the beam path of the beams 22 and 20 such as tokeep the beam paths free of photoabsorbing species. The enclosure 23 andbeam splitting module 21 will be described in more detail below withrespect to FIGS. 2-7. For example, the beam splitting module 21preferably also includes optics for filtering visible red light from thebeam 22 so that substantially only VUV light is received at a detectorof the diagnostic module 18. Also, an inert gas purge is preferablyflowing through the enclosure 23.

The diagnostic module 18 preferably includes at least one energydetector. This detector measures the total energy of the beam portionthat corresponds directly to the energy of the output beam 20. Anoptical configuration such as an optical attenuator, e.g., a plate or acoating, or other optics may be formed on or near the detector or beamsplitter module 21 to control the intensity, spectral distributionand/or other parameters of the radiation impinging upon the detector(see U.S. patent applications Nos. 09/172,805, 60/172,749, 60/166,952and 60/178,620, each of which is assigned to the same assignee as thepresent application and is hereby incorporated by reference).

One other component of the diagnostic module 18 is preferably awavelength and/or bandwidth detection component such as a monitor etalonor grating spectrometer (see U.S. patent applications Nos. 09/416,344,60/186,003, 60/158,808, and 60/186,096, and Lokai, et al., serial numbernot yet assigned, “Absolute Wavelength Calibration of Lithography LaserUsing Multiple Element or Tandem See Through Hollow Cathode Lamp”, filedMay 10, 2000, each of which is assigned to the same assignee as thepresent application, and U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,905,243, 5,978,391, 5,450,207,4,926,428, 5,748,346, 5,025,445, and 5,978,394, all of the abovewavelength and/or bandwidth detection and monitoring components beinghereby incorporated by reference.

Other components of the diagnostic module may include a pulse shapedetector or ASE detector, such as are described at U.S. patentapplications Nos. 09/484,818 and 09/418,052, respectively, each of whichis assigned to the same assignee as the present application and ishereby incorporated by reference, such as for gas control and/or outputbeam energy stabilization. There may be a beam alignment monitor, e.g.,such as is described at U.S. Pat. No. 6,014,206 which is herebyincorporated by reference.

The processor or control computer 16 receives and processes values ofsome of the pulse shape, energy, amplified spontaneous emission (ASE),energy stability, energy overshoot for burst mode operation, wavelength,spectral purity and/or bandwidth, among other input or output parametersof the laser system and output beam. The processor 16 also controls theline narrowing module to tune the wavelength and/or bandwidth orspectral purity, and controls the power supply and pulser module 4 and 8to control preferably the moving average pulse power or energy, suchthat the energy dose at points on the workpiece is stabilized around adesired value. In addition, the computer 16 controls the gas handlingmodule 6 which includes gas supply valves connected to various gassources.

The laser gas mixture is initially filled into the laser chamber 2during new fills. The gas composition for a very stable excimer laser inaccord with the preferred embodiment uses helium or neon or a mixture ofhelium and neon as buffer gas, depending on the laser. Preferred gascomposition are described at U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,393,405 and 4,977,573 andU.S. patent applications Nos. 09/317,526, 09/51 3,025, 60/124,785,09/418,052, 60/159,525 and 60/160,126, each of which is assigned to thesame assignee and is hereby incorporated by reference into the presentapplication. The concentration of the fluorine in the gas mixture mayrange from 0.003% to 1.00%, and is preferably around 0.1%. An additionalgas additive, such as a rare gas, may be added for increased energystability and/or as an attenuator as described in the '025 application,mentioned above. Specifically, for the F2-laser, an addition of Xenonand/or Argon may be used. The concentration of xenon or argon in themixture may range from 0.0001% to 0.1%. For an ArF-laser, an addition ofxenon or krypton may be used also having a concentration between 0.0001%to 0.1%.

Halogen and rare gas injections, total pressure adjustments and gasreplacement procedures are performed using the gas handling module 6preferably including a vacuum pump, a valve network and one or more gascompartments. The gas handling module 6 receives gas via gas linesconnected to gas containers, tanks, canisters and/or bottles. Preferredgas handling and/or replenishment procedures of the preferredembodiment, other than as specifically described herein, are describedat U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,977,573 and 5,396,514 and U.S. patent applicationsNos. 60/124,785, 09/418,052, 09/379,034, 60/171,717, and 60/159,525,each of which is assigned to the same assignee as the presentapplication, and U.S. Pat. Nos. 5,978,406, 6,014,398 and 6,028,880, allof which are hereby incorporated by reference. A Xe gas supply may beincluded either internal or external to the laser system according tothe '025 application, mentioned above.

Referring now to FIG. 2, a first preferred embodiment of a beam deliverysystem includes the enclosure 23, mentioned briefly above, which sealsthe beam paths of the beams 20 and 22 everywhere after the beam isoutcoupled from the laser system until the beam 20 reaches theapplication process 30. The enclosure 23 is maintained substantiallyfree of VUV photoabsorbing species such as water vapor, oxygen,hydrocarbons and fluorocarbons preferably by a method as set forth atU.S. patent application Nos. 09/343,333, incorporated by referenceabove.

Briefly, the preferred method, as described in more detail in the '333application, is a method wherein the enclosure 23 is first pumped downto a rough vacuum, e.g., using a mechanical roughing pump, such as arotary vane pump. Next, an inert gas is purged into the enclosure 23.The vacuum/purging steps are preferably performed some optimal number oftimes, such as from one to ten times, balancing the removal ofphotoabsorbing impurities in the enclosure 23 with the time it takes toperform those steps. Then, an inert gas is flowed at a slightoverpressure (e.g., <50 mbar) using gas inlets 32 a and 32 b and gasoutlet 34. The VUV laser is operated with the inert gas flowing at theslight overpressure. The above method is preferred as being time andcost efficient. Two alternative methods which may, however, be used forkeeping the beam path substantially free of photoabsorbing species arepumping the enclosure 23 to high vacuum, and flowing an inert gas athigh flow rate through the enclosure 23.

The application process 30 may include a separate housing for theworkpiece and/or additional optical equipment such as an imaging system,or may be the workpiece itself. Two reflectors 36 a and 36 b, preferablyboth being beam splitters or one reflector 36 a being a beam splitterand the other reflector 36 b being a mirror, are shown for splitting offbeam 22 and allowing the substantial portion of the beam 20 to passthrough unhindered towards the application process 30. The beam 22 isdirected ultimately to the detector 38, preferably via a collectinglens, grids and a diffuser (collectively 40), and a signal 42corresponding to the energy measured is sent to a processor (not shown)or other data acquisition equipment using a vacuum feedthrough 44. Avisible red light portion of the beam 22 is preferably first filteredsuch that substantially only the VUV portion of the beam 22 reaches thedetector 38, as described in more detail below.

The reflectors 36 a and 36 b preferably each comprise uncoated platesmade of excimer grade CaF₂, MgF₂ quartz,. fused silica, doped fusedsilica, LiF, BaF₂, or other material that is mostly transparent to VUVradiation. In this case, the reflectivity of each reflector 36 a and 36b is preferably approximately 3-15%, e.g., 8%. Additional dielectriccoatings can be deposited onto preferred reflectors 36 a and 36 b inorder to reduce or increase reflectivity. However, uncoated surfacesallow the preferred reflectors 36 a and 36 b to have longer lifetimesthan those with coated surfaces.

The incidence angles of the beam onto the preferred reflectors 36 a and36 b are preferably relatively small, in order to reduce the dependenceof the reflectivity on the polarization of the incident laser beam, asexplained below. The reflectivity of the uncoated surface for p- ands-polarized beams is described by Fresnel's formulas:

 R _(s)=sin²(φ−φ′)/sin²(φ+φ′),

R _(p)=tan²(φ−φ′)/tan²(φ+φ′),

where incident and refracted angles φ and φ′ are approximately relatedthrough the formula:

sin(φ)=n·sin(φ′),

where n is the refractive index of the material.

Thus, for the angles that approach Brewster's angle φ_(B)=arctan(n), thereflectivity of the p-component decreases to zero, while s-componentsexperience an increase in reflectivity. For example, for materials suchas CaF₂ or MgF₂ with refractive indices of approximately 1.5, Brewster'sangle φ_(B) is approximately 56°. At 45° incidence, the ratio ofreflectivities for s- and p-polarized beams is still as high as 10.5.One should preferably avoid such contrast since in the case ofp-polarized laser output, small changes of polarization state can causelarge errors in energy readings. Therefore, the incidence angles arepreferably limited to less than 22.5°.

The reflectors 36 a and 36 b direct the beam 22 at an appropriate angleto the diffraction grating 46. The grating 46 shown is a reflectiongrating 46. An alternative configuration may include a transmissiongrating. A grism may also alternatively be used preferably made of CaF₂or another of the VUV transparent materials set forth above.

The grating 46 provides separation of the VUV beam from the red portionof the beam 22. The incidence and reflection angles θ_(i) and θ_(r)into/from the diffraction grating 46 are related through the formula:

sin(θ_(i))−sin(θ_(r))=m λ/d

where λ is the wavelength, m is diffraction order (m=0, +/−1, +/−2. . .) and d is the periodic spacing of the grooves of the grating. Forexample, a typical grating with the groove density of 1200 grooves/mmand an incidence angle of 11°, zeroth- and first-order reflected beamsat 157 nm will be at −11° and zero°, respectively. At the same time, thenearest angles of reflection for the red light of the wavelength ofapproximately 700 nm will be around −11° and 40.5° for zeroth- and-first orders, respectively. Thereafter, one can separate the VUV andred portions of the beam 22 by using an aperture in front of thedetector as shown in FIGS. 2, 4, 5 or 6.

Collecting lens and diffuser, of the assembly 40 which also includesgrids, described below, should be preferably made of one of thematerials mentioned above as a choice for preferred beam-splitters 36 aand 36 b. The diffuser serves to attenuate the beam and also to decreasedependence of the overall sensitivity on the beam alignment. Theattenuator grids are preferably fine-pitch stainless steel meshes. Theseserve as additional diffusers and attenuators, and additionally provideshielding of the detector against electromagnetic interference.Additional beam shaping optics, such as an aperture 47, may be includes,e.g., as set forth at U.S. patent application No. 60/172,749, which isassigned to the same assignee and is hereby incorporated by reference.

Preferably, optical components 40 and detector 38 are encased into theenclosure 23, as shown, or in a separately hermetically sealed housingwith inert gas purging, having an entrance window for the beam 22. Ithas been observed that when such enclosure is evacuated, there tends tooccur a build-up of hydrocarbon film on the optical elements exposed tothe UV beam. This is likely caused by polymerization of organicmolecules present in low-grade vacuum. Instead of providing high-vacuumenclosure, it is preferred to arrange purging, as described above (seethe '333 application) with clean inert gas (such as nitrogen, helium,argon, neon and others) at a flow rate preferably around 5 liters/min orless.

Experimentally, it has been observed that purging improves stability ofthe laser output by at least an order of magnitude, as shown in FIG. 3.FIG. 3 shows the output power of a laser in accord with the preferredembodiment of FIGS. 1 and 2. Plot 1 shows the output power when inertgas purging is used, and plot 2 shows the output power when an evacuatedhousing is used. Plot 1 shows the output power stabilized around 2.2 Wover about 2.5 hours, while plot 2 shows the output power decreasingfrom around 2.8 W to around 2.5 W over the same period. Thus the energystability observed with inert gas purging is far better than with anevacuated housing.

The gas flow path is also preferably arranged in such a way as tominimize or avoid any “dead”, un-purged spaces in the enclosure 23 ofFIG. 2. For example, an additional gas inlet 32 b is preferably providedas shown in FIG. 2 to the chamber encasing the detector and separatedfrom the main beam path by grid attenuators. The collecting lens anddiffuser are preferably mounted so that there are vent holes aroundthem. Among mentioned above inert gases, it is preferred to useultra-high purity argon, for the reason of its relatively low cost, ascompared to helium and neon. Nitrogen of ultra-high purity gradetypically contains higher levels of impurities as compared to UHP-heliumand neon and, therefore, is less suitable for purging.

The detector 38 may be one of, but is not limited to, a siliconphotodiode, pyroelectric, thermopile, electron phototube,photomultiplier, CCD-detector, or diamond detector as set forth in U.S.patent application No. 60/122,145, which is assigned to the sameassignee as is hereby incorporated by reference. Preference is based onthe lifetime, sensitivity, time resolution and cost.

The diffraction grating 46 is preferably aluminum-coated and protectedwith the thin layer of MgF₂, and may be otherwise as may be known to oneskilled in the art of UV diffraction gratings. The grating may be one ofthose described at U.S. patent application No. 60/167,835, which isassigned to the same assignee, and U.S. Pat. No. 5,999,318, each ofwhich is hereby incorporated by reference. Sides of the grating shouldbe carefully protected from stray UV light by appropriate shields, forexample made of aluminum foil. The purpose of the shields is to preventdegradation and outgassing of organic materials beneath the aluminumlayer which are commonly used in the process of replication of gratings.

Referring to FIG. 4, the second embodiment is preferably the same orsimilar to the first embodiment shown and described with respect to FIG.2, except that the second embodiment shown at FIG. 4 utilizes aholographic beam sampler 48 (for example: HBS-series from GentecElectro-optics, Sainte-Foy, Quebec, Canada). Holographic beam sampler 48is preferably a transmissive diffraction grating formed on a transparentsubstrate (see above for the choice of materials transparent in the VUVrange). Advantages of the holographic beam sampler 48 include: (1) onlyvery small portion of the beam energy is split off (typically ˜0.1%),therefore, insertion losses are very low, e.g., as compared to ˜8% forconventional beam-splitter, and (2) wavelength separation is achieved atthe same time, since the diffraction angle for the red portion of thebeam is different from that of the VUV component, thus making the designsimple and robust. A disadvantage of the holographic sampler 48,however, is its higher cost. The choice of preferred materials for thediffractive beam sampler is dictated by its transparency in VUV rangeand radiation hardness. Examples of such materials are CaF₂, MgF₂,quartz, fused silica, doped fused silica, LiF, BaF₂.

The VUV portion of the beam 20 that is diffracted at the holographicbeam sampler 48 is directed to a reflector 50 such as a VUV mirror orbeamsplitter. The reflector directs the VUV light toward the assembly 40and detector 38 The reflector 50 is designed for maximum reflectance atVUV wavelengths. The reflector 50 may be at least partly transmissive atvisible wavelengths to prevent or minimize red light reflection towardsthe detector. A copper shield may be provided around the reflector 50 toabsorb this red light, e.g., so that the red light is not otherwisereflected within the enclosure towards the detector 38. An example ofsuch an arrangement of the reflector 50 is described at U.S. patentapplication No. 60/166,952, which is assigned to the same assignee andis hereby incorporated by reference.

Referring to FIG. 5, the third embodiment is the same or similar to thatshown and described with respect to the first embodiment of FIG. 2,except that the third embodiment of FIG. 5 utilizes dichroic dielectricmirrors 52 in order to achieve separation of the VUV beam from the redportion of the laser output. In the third embodiment shown in FIG. 5,one beam-splitter 36 a and two dichroic mirrors 52 are preferably used.The dichroic mirrors 52 are preferably formed by depositing thinquarter-wave layers of dielectrics with alternating high and lowrefractive index, so that VUV beam is mostly reflected and red light isalmost completely transmitted. Other details of dichroic mirrors 52 areunderstood by those skilled in the art. Typically, a contrast ratiobetween the reflectance of the VUV light and the red light of betterthan 30 can be achieved. The choice of the number of mirrors isdetermined by the suppression ratio desired for reducing the signalcaused by the red component, e.g., below 1.0% or less. Two mirrors willtypically provide at least two orders of magnitude contrast ratio.

Referring to FIG. 6, the fourth embodiment is an alternative variationof the first embodiment, and as such, is the same as or similar to thefirst embodiment of FIG. 2, except that the fourth embodiment of FIG. 6includes only one beam splitter 36 a and a grating 46. In thearrangement of FIG. 6, the intensity of the optical signal to thedetector 38 is increased compared to the first embodiment of FIG. 2.This may be desired if the sensitivity of the detector 38 is otherwiseinsufficient at a given output power of the laser. Alternatively, threeor more beamsplitters 36 a, 36 b, 36 c, etc., can be employed, with theadvantage is some circumstances that a reduction in signal to thedetector 38 may be achieved. In doing so, an advantage of reducing theintensity of the beam at the diffraction grating 46, and the assembly40, particularly including the collecting lens and attenuator grids, isthat the lifetimes of these components may be increased. At the sametime, decreasing in the intensity of the beam sample can lead to a lowersignal-to-noise ratio if the noise is dominated by scattered lightinside the housing of the energy detector 38. Therefore, depending onthe output power of the VUV laser and sensitivity of the detector 38,there is some optimum number of the beamsplitters 36 a, etc. that may beselected. These considerations apply to the second and third embodimentas well as to the first embodiment.

FIGS. 7a and 7 b show alternative arrangements of beam-splitters thatcan be utilized in the first and third embodiments, respectively,preferably when the laser output is polarized. In both FIG. 7a and FIG.7b, two reflectors 36 a and 36 b, preferably both beamsplitters, areused. The reflectors 36 a and 36 b are aligned to eliminate deviationsdue to polarization fluctuations and preferences based on differingreflectivities for the orthogonal polarization components.

Generally, the first beam splitter 36 a and the second reflector 36 bare aligned so that the polarization dependence of the reflectivity ofthe first beam splitter 36 a is compensated by the polarizationdependence of the reflectivity of the second reflector 36 b. Forexample, the first beam splitter 36 a may be aligned to reflect thep-polarization component of the incident beam at 10% of the efficiencyof the s-polarization component. The second reflector 36 b is thenaligned to reflect the component corresponding to the s-polarizationcomponent incident at the first beam splitter 36 a at 10% of theefficiency of its orthogonal counterpart corresponding to thep-polarization component incident at the first beam splitter 36 a. Thus,the overall dependence on the polarization of the output beam of thereflectivity of the first beam splitter 36 a-second reflector 36 bcombination is reduced or eliminated.

Preferably, the first reflector 36 a of both FIGS. 7a and 7 b isoriented in such a way that in the case that the incident laser beam ispolarized, the beam is p-polarized with respect to this firstbeam-splitter 36 a. The second reflector 36 b of both FIGS. 7a and 7 bis preferably oriented in a perpendicular plane to the first reflector36 a, so that the p-component of laser beam reflected from the firstreflector 36 a is s-polarized with respect to the second reflector 36 b.Preferably, each reflector 36 a and 36 b reflects the beam at anincidence angle of substantially 45 degrees.

An additional advantage of this configuration of the reflectors 36 a and36 b of both FIGS. 7a and 7 b is that the reflectivity of the firstreflector 36 a for a polarized laser beam is significantly reduced,typically from about 4% to 0.1%. Therefore, more of the beam power isavailable for the application. At the same time, the above explainedadvantage of polarization selectivity of the first reflector 36 a iscompensated by the inverse selectivity of the second reflector 36 b,since p- and s-components of the incident beam become s- andp-components, respectively, at the second reflector 36 b.

While exemplary drawings and specific embodiments of the presentinvention have been described and illustrated, it is to be understoodthat that the scope of the present invention is not to be limited to theparticular embodiments discussed. Thus, the embodiments shall beregarded as illustrative rather than restrictive, and it should beunderstood that variations may be made in those embodiments by workersskilled in the arts without departing from the scope of the presentinvention as set forth in the claims that follow, and equivalentsthereof.

In addition, in the method claims that follow, the steps have beenordered in selected typographical sequences. However, the sequences havebeen selected and so ordered for typographical convenience and are notintended to imply any particular order for performing the steps, exceptfor those claims wherein a particular ordering of steps is expressly setforth or understood by one of ordinary skill in the art as beingnecessary.

What is claimed is:
 1. A molecular fluorine laser system, comprising: adischarge chamber filled with a laser gas mixture at least includingmolecular fluorine and a buffer gas; a plurality of electrodes in thedischarge chamber connected to a discharge circuit for energizing thelaser gas mixture; a resonator having the discharge chamber therein forgenerating an output beam; a sealed enclosure for providing a beam pathfor the beam that is substantially free of contaminant species so thatthe energy of the beam can reach an application process withoutsubstantial disturbance due to the presence of the contaminant speciesalong said beam path; a detector coupled with the enclosure; diagnosticprocessing electronics; and at least one optical component within theenclosure, and wherein said beam interacts with said at least oneoptical component within said enclosure and is directed along a beampath within said enclosure that is protected from being substantiallydisturbed by said contaminant species, such that in operation of saidlaser system, said at least one optical component interacts with saidbeam which is directed from the at least one optical component alongsaid beam path within said enclosure and substantially delivered alongsaid beam path to said application process, wherein said at least oneoptical component separates a diagnostic beam from the output beam andseparates a visible component from a VUV component of the diagnosticbeam, so that the output beam substantially continues to the applicationprocess and the diagnostic beam is detected at the detector comprisingsubstantially only the VUV component, whereby one or more parameters ofthe VUV portion of the output beam are monitored by the detector of theVUV component of the diagnostic beam and diagnostic processing by thediagnostic processing electronics.
 2. The laser system of claim 1,wherein said at least one optical component includes a diffractiongrating for dispersing said beam such that only a selected portion of aspectral distribution of said beam continues to propagate along saidbeam path and other portions of said spectral distribution of said beamare dispersed away from said beam path.
 3. A system for delivering abeam leading ultimately to an application process, comprising: molecularfluorine laser for generating the beam, which characteristicallyincludes a VUV portion and a visible portion; an enclosure for sealing abeam path from the outer atmosphere; at least one port for preparing anatmosphere within said enclosure to maintain said enclosuresubstantially free of contaminant species, a detector coupled with theenclosure; diagnostic processing electronics; wherein said enclosurecontains at least one optical component therein for interacting with thebeam, and wherein said beam interacts with said at least one opticalcomponent within said enclosure and is directed along a beam path withinsaid enclosure that is protected from being substantially disturbed bysaid contaminant species, such that in operation of a laser systemhaving said beam delivery system coupled thereto, said at least oneoptical component interacts with said beam which is directed from the atleast one optical component along said beam path within said enclosureand substantially delivered along said beam path to said applicationprocess, wherein said at least one optical component separates adiagnostic beam from the output beam and separates a visible componentfrom a VUV component of the diagnostic beam, so that the output beamsubstantially continues to the application process and the diagnosticbeam is detected at the detector comprising substantially only the VUVcomponent, whereby one or more parameters of the VUV portion of theoutput beam are monitored by the detector of the VUV component of thediagnostic beam and diagnostic processing by the diagnostic processingelectronics.
 4. The beam delivery system of claim 3, wherein said atleast one optical component includes a diffraction grating fordispersing said beam such that only a selected portion of a spectraldistribution of said beam continues to propagate along said beam pathand other portions of said spectral distribution of said beam aredispersed away from said beam path.
 5. The system of claim 3, whereinthe at least one port for evacuating the enclosure.
 6. The system ofclaim 3, wherein the at least one port for flowing an inert gas withinthe enclosure.
 7. The system of claim 6, wherein the at least one portfurther for evacuating the enclosure prior to flowing said inert gaswithin said enclosure.